Resica hails guardians of freedom

Friday

Nov 21, 2008 at 12:01 AM

Many think of veterans for selling little paper poppies but on Nov. 12, students at Resica Elementary School were properly introduced to veterans and the importance of their roles to our country and ourselves over the ages.

MARIA HORN

Many think of veterans for selling little paper poppies but on Nov. 12, students at Resica Elementary School were properly introduced to veterans and the importance of their roles to our country and ourselves over the ages.

Instructor Sue Eden conceived of a veteran celebration at Resica Elementary School in honor of her father, a helicopter pilot for the Marines in the Korean War. She had the full support of Principal Gail Kulick, but credits music teacher Yvonne Rispoli for helping arrange the assembly with patriotic music. Rispoli also thought of a way that students and staff could honor veterans they know by creating a "Veteran's Wall" in the school. Red paper bricks were sent home and students were to ask their families to help them fill the names and branches of service of veterans that they knew. Within a month, more than 400 veterans were remembered, covering all branches of the military and spanning back to the Revolutionary War.

Children were also encouraged to invite veterans they knew to come to Resica to be honored. A total of 14 vets volunteered their time to come and be interviewed by fourth and fifth graders and accept honors from the school at a formal assembly. A lunch was provided, compliments of Kulick and Eden, as students were thrilled to see and hear the tales of these men and women, some of them familiar in their everyday work on the East Stroudsburg Area School District staff.

Library Assistant Arlene Biddulph captivated the audience with her tale of enlisting in the Air Force. Although she told how her father thought that his "girlie-girl" daughter would never do it, she proved him wrong and showed the nettle that a woman can do anything a man ab do. Biddulph fulfilled four years as a hydraulic mechanic, married a veteran, and has a son who is still serving after 10 years.

Additional district employees who impressed children with their experiences were Robinson Rodriguez (Marine Corps) and James Vincent (Air Force and Army). Retired instructor Wesley Rusk received high marks from students and from former teaching partner Ellis.

Others honored were: Al Fariole, of the Air Force; Randy Evans, Bob Rosenberger and Dariel Saldana, all from the Army, Eric Giannolla and Marvin Hammond from the Marine Corps and Bill Blanken, Robert Smith, and George Taylor of the Navy. One veteran close to this writer's own heart who attended was big brother Michael Horn of the Army.

He spoke to students of the importance of education. Even in the military, enlistees need to pass a written test to be accepted. Reading and math skills are paramount to recruits. Everything in the military has a book or manual about it, including weapons. Math is an absolute necessity, not only to fire a weapon (distance, angle, speed), but for synchronizing time for assignments or ordering and preparing food for soldiers.

He revisited an incident of how listening skills and following directions helped save a man's life. When he was stationed in Panama, a soldier in his unit missed the briefing on poisonous plants and animals and almost caught a poison dart frog with his bare hands! Luckily he was tackled to the ground before contact, and was given a "brief" briefing.

Students flocked around the vets, asking for autographs, thrilled to be so near an actual American hero. But as Al Fariole explained to the audience, the things that really make a veteran feel valued are the words, "Thank you" and "Welcome home." After serving a tour of duty in the Vietnam War, he did not always receive those greetings during that turbulent era.